I do not own Kingdom Hearts or any of the characters.
Losses
Tyler watched Sora in silences. They'd found Kairi and the man Sora identified as Ansem, then Xehanort's Heartless. However, Kairi identified him as Riku, Sora's missing friend. So, now Sora was standing with his hand on top of Riku's, Kairi's hands holding both of theirs, and with Sora closing his eyes. Finally, Sora's eyes opened and instantly went wide as dinner plates.
"Riku!" Sora breathed, falling to his knees and holding Riku's hand with both of his. "It's Riku. Riku's here. I looked for you!" Tears rolled down his face as Riku sighed, eyes softening.
"Come on Sora," Riku said. "You've got to pull it together."
"I looked everywhere for you!" Sora continued.
"I didn't want you to find me," Riku said.
"But it was him that was helping us, wasn't it?" Goofy asked Donald, only for Donald to look completely confused. "Those clues we kept finding. That musta been Riku."
"I was starting to worry you guys weren't ever gonna catch on," Riku said. "Sora never did pick the...brightest friends."
"What do you mean by that!?" Donald demanded.
"Why didn't you let me know you were okay?" Sora asked.
"I told you," Riku said. "I didn't want to be found. Not like this. I...couldn't. I fought with Ansem...with Xehanort's Heartless...when it invaded my Heart, and I won. But to use the power of darkness, I had to become Ansem myself."
"Does that mean, you can't change back?" Kairi asked.
"This battle isn't over," Riku said. "And until it is, I still need the power of darkness."
"Then, let's finish it!" Sora said. "You're still Riku no matter what."
Kairi nodded, smiling, and Riku smiled as well, also nodding. However, just as she did, Serah stepped up beside her, smiling.
"So, your name's Riku?" Serah asked. "You didn't let me thank you for saving me before."
"Wait, he saved you too?" Tyler asked.
"Axel brought me to him in order to have him get me somewhere safe," Serah said.
"Then you have my thanks," Lightning said.
"You must be her sister," Riku said. "You don't need to thank me. I just did what was right."
"Right or not, we're grateful," Noel said. "We owe you."
"No, you definitely don't," Riku said. "Now come on. As I said, this battle isn't over yet."
The others all nodded and they continued along the walkway to the stairs leading up the castle. After a minute, they reached a room with the floor sloping up to the next doorway, and several keyhole-shaped frames with glowing light filling them. Most were red, and two were shattered, but two of them were blue. Each frame had a black weapon silhouette on the floor in front of it. He recognized a pair of keyblades, Axel's chakram, a scythe, three daggers, arrow guns, and a playing card. However, there were several he didn't look like. The two blue ones were the playing card and a weapon that looked kind of like a sword, but with a rounded, spiked frame over the end of it.
"What are these?" Tyler asked.
"Portals," Riku said. "They'll take us to the personal chambers of the remaining Organization members. The card is Luxord. The other is Saix."
"I'll handle Saix," Tyler said.
"I'll come with you," Lightning said.
"Me too," Fang said, glancing at Vanille. "Wait for me, alright?"
Vanille nodded, smiling and giving her a kiss. Tyler nodded to Sora, who returned the nod then headed through Luxord's portal with Donald and Goofy.
"If we're not back in twenty minutes, Riku, go after Sora, and Noel, you and Vanille come after us," Tyler said. "Serah, stay with Kairi."
Everyone nodded and Tyler and his two chosen teammates walked through the portal, finding themselves in a long, curved hallway leading to a rectangular, empty room they could see through the fence on top of the mid-torso-height wall to their left along the inside of the curve. As they reached the room, they found Saix staring out the window at the moon, which had a beam of light shining into it. Saix turned to them, humming thoughtfully.
"I did not expect it to be you," Saix said. "I expected Roxas to be the one to make it this far."
"Yeah well, both Sora and the Nobody he reabsorbed are busy dealing with Luxord," Tyler said. "You'll have to settle for us."
"That's fine," Saix said. "You have proven yourself to be quite a formidable adversary as well. You must be dealt with before you can become a hinderance to the Organization."
"What, all three of you who are left, soon to be one?" Tyler asked, summoning his keyblade.
Saix smiled, raising the weapon in his right hand. Tyler wasn't sure what to call it. It wasn't a sword, since the edges were blunt, and it was about as thick as Saix's arms, but it wasn't a hammer, or a club, or anything like that either. He flicked his hand and the round section of the tip suddenly extended eight short blades around it. Tyler narrowed his eyes, readying himself. Saix wouldn't be an easy foe. He was second-in-command for a reason.
"Do you feel it?" Saix asked, spreading his arms as he flipped his weapon to reverse grip. "The moon's power." He floated into the air, adopting a position like he had been crucified, his weapon floating vertically behind him, right-side-up. "Moon, shine down!"
Suddenly, he began to glow with a white-blue energy, and he dropped, grabbing his weapon before slamming it into the ground. An explosion of darkness shot off of the impact point and Tyler and the others scattered as Saix pursued Tyler, moving much, much faster than Tyler had expected, especially with such a massive, heavy weapon. Tyler fled from him rapidly. Every strike had the force of a freight train, and every time the weapon struck the ground, it send thin, vertical waves of darkness ripping along the ground like blades. Finally, Saix leapt into the air, hurling his weapon, which Tyler only barely avoided, then formed a new one. Tyler growled in annoyance.
"Enough of this!" Tyler growled, streaking forward.
As he passed Saix's weapon, he grabbed the handle, ripping it free of the floor, then spun, slamming it into Saix and sending him streaking across the room. When he hit the wall, he dented it, the glow around his body fading. However, he shoved himself out of the wall again and returned to attacking, though without the waves of darkness this time.
Tyler spun around the weapon, which dented the floor when it hit, then slashed at Saix's back, Only for Saix to turn and deflect it. Then, Saix spun, his weapon whipping around and crashing into Tyler's keyblade again, sending him bouncing away. Lightning and Fang both charged, but Saix ducked under Lightning's gunblade, then kicked her in the side, hurling her. Fang swung her staff at him and he blocked it, only for the end segment to separate and swing around at him. He leaned his head out of the way, receiving only a small scratch on his cheek before kicking her and sending her bounding away as well. Tyler reached him just as he did, slashing him across the stomach, only to receive Saix's weapon to the face as repayment. Saix held a hand to his wound and smirked.
"Not bad," he said. "You really are dangerous."
"It's over, Saix!" Lightning said as Tyler staggered to his feet and shook his head, steadying himself.
"Hardly," Saix said. "One lucky strike doesn't mean this battle is over."
He floated into the air again, once again beginning to glow, then as he fell, Tyler and the others once again found themselves retreating from him. Tyler grit his teeth. This wasn't the way he had thought things would go. He hadn't expected Saix to possess such overwhelming power. If this was the second in command, then how powerful was Xemnas?
"Begone!" Saix shouted, hurling his weapon at Tyler.
Tyler swore, diving aside before rolling to his feet just as Saix landed and charged at him. Tyler growled. He'd had enough. He was ending this. He summoned his keyblade in reverse grip and shot forward. Saix roared, swinging his weapon down at Tyler, but Tyler ducked under it slashing Saix across the torso as he passed, then slowed to a stop, spinning to prepare for any more attacks, only to see Saix standing motionlessly, the end of his weapon embedded in the floor. After a moment, his legs nearly buckled and he walked past his weapon, staggering to the window and stopping, staring up at the moon.
"Why?" Saix asked. "Kingdom Hearts. Where...is my heart?" He reached out toward the moon, only to fade away in seconds.
Tyler sighed, letting his keyblade disappear. "That guy was a pain."
"Nicely done," Fang said.
"Agreed," Lightning smiled, slipping her hand into his. "You did really well."
"Thanks," Tyler smiled. "Come on. Let's head back before they assume we lost."
Lightning and Fang nodded and they walked back to the portal, heading back to the others and reporting Saix was gone. A moment later, Sora returned with Donald, Goofy, Kairi, and Riku.
"Kairi and Riku both went after Sora?" Tyler asked.
"Kairi threw a fit about not wanting to stay behind anymore," Noel shrugged. "So Riku escorted her."
Tyler shrugged. "Whatever." He looked up to the higher side of the room where there was a door that had previously been blocked by a barrier, now clear and revealing a set of stairs. "Come on. We're down to one."
The others all nodded and they turned, walking up the stairs. They left the stairway onto a path along the exterior of the castle, and just ahead of them, up a short slope, were Mickey, Oswald, and a man with a black and red cloak and poncho with blonde hair. The man was holding an odd-looking device that was firing the beam into the moon, but the beam had become unstable, flickering and sparking, the machine shuddering and shaking, sparks jumping off of it rapidly.
"Your Majesty!" Sora shouted as they ran toward them, only for Tyler to catch him, yanking him back.
"Sora, the rest is up to you," the blonde man said. "And Roxas...I doubt you can hear me, but...I am sorry."
"Ansem!" Mickey shouted as the machine began to whine.
"My heart is telling me what I must do," Ansem said. "Please allow me to do what it says."
"No!" Mickey said as Oswald began to drag him away from the machine. "Oswald!"
"You should know better than to deny someone the chance to follow their heart," Oswald said, hurling Mickey to the others, then walking after him.
Suddenly, Xemnas appeared off to the other side from a Corridor of Darkness. "I was wondering who would dare interfere with my Kingdom Hearts, and look...here you all are. How convenient for me."
"Xemnas, I presume," Tyler said, summoning his keyblade. "Last man standing because you're afraid to fight your own battles, and instead you throw your pawns at us."
"Pawns?" Xemnas asked. "No. You have not been fighting pawns. Each member of Organization XIII is a valued ally."
"Sure they are," Tyler said.
Xemnas turned to Ansem. "Ansem the Wise. You look pathetic."
"Have your laugh," Ansem said. "I deserve as much for failing to see you for the fool you are."
"Students do take after their teachers," Xemnas said. "Only a fool would be your apprentice. After all, none of this would have happened without you. You are the source of all Heartless. It was your research that inspired me to go further than you ever dared."
"I admit," Ansem said. "My disregard brought chaos to more worlds than one. But what were you seeking? You erased me from the world only to take my name and continue research better left forgotten. Is this the answer you've been looking for?"
"All that and more," Xemnas said. "I'm carrying on what you yourself began, and I'm creating a brand new world, one heart at a time. I thought you'd praise me, but all you ever do is hold me back. I understand, though. Unlike me, you have a heart. And you're powerless to control it. Consumed by the jealousy you feel toward the student who surpassed you."
"Xehanort," Ansem sighed. "Foolish apprentice of a foolish man. You have surpassed nothing. Only proved how little we both know. We may profess to know the heart, but its essence is beyond our reach. We're both ignorant. As oblivious as when we began. I'm afraid that any world you try to create..." he turned to look back at Xemnas, "any world of yours...would be an empire of ignorance. That is why you and your creation are destined to fall!" He turned back to his machine, which was snapping and popping loudly now. "We've said enough! Riku, you know what to do!"
Riku nodded.
"King Mickey, my friend, forgive me," Ansem said as his machine began to shine suddenly. "Farewell!"
Riku turned, holding Sora back as Tyler held Mickey back by the arm. Then, the machine exploded into a massive, swirling column of light, the bottom and the top both bowed outward, and waves of magic energy running up around the pillar in rings before dispersing at the top. Blinding light enveloped them all, and Tyler had to shield his eyes, feeling Lightning's arms wrap around him. He closed his eyes, wrapping his arm around her and tucked his face into her shoulder. Then, the light began to bleed through his eyelids and all feeling stopped.
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